Another interesting fact connected with the Chinese, and one which has not received that attention from writers upon the country which it deserves, is the partiality shown by the people for their written character, and the extent to which it is applied for purposes of decoration. The taste exhibited in the advertisement by tradesmen of their business and wares has already been alluded to; yet the shop signs form but a small proportion of the inscriptions which attract the notice whilst traversing a Chinese city. Characters of all sizes and colours appear to teem in every direction and upon everything, until the careless traveller is apt to weary of the perpetually recurring hieroglyphic; but to the inquiring mind there is an interest in speculating what it all means, and the Chinese student will find in the collection a convenient opportunity for studying and acquiring a considerable proportion of the few thousand characters which should suffice to give him a practical knowledge of the language.

The wholesale manner in which some churches are decorated nowadays with texts, &c., will perhaps convey the nearest idea of the extent to which the character is used in the embellishment of public buildings and dwelling houses. Scarcely a wall, door, window, or pillar, but displays in some shape or another its scroll, tablet, or device, bearing some felicitous couplet, motto, or monogram, artistically inscribed.